“It must have been one of those days”…from a perfect game to the game-winning hit, Kim Sung-hyun’s ‘Burning Friday’
“Maybe it was my day.”
Kim Sung-hyun (SSG Landers) went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored in the eighth spot in the batting order against the Kiwoom Heroes of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League at SSG Landers Field in Incheon, South Korea, on April 2.
Choi Won-tae started the game for Kiwoom. SSG’s offense struggled to capitalize on Choi’s pitches. Not a single batter reached base until the sixth inning with one out. However, Kim Sung-hyun broke Choi’s perfect record. In a 3B2S situation, he took a high pitch from Choi and crushed it to the left side of the infield.
After breaking Choi’s perfect game, Kim Sung-hyun came through in the bottom of the ninth. Trailing 1-2 in the bottom of the ninth, SSG tied the game with a sacrifice fly by Park Sung-ho with the bases loaded. After Cho Hyung-woo struck out, Kim Sung-hyun came to the plate. He took a second pitch from Lim Chang-min. The ball went long and over the head of Lee Jung-hoo in center field. Kim Sung-hyun’s game-winning hit gave SSG a dramatic victory 안전놀이터.
After the game, Kim Sung-hyun said, “All of my hits feel good,” adding, “I honestly thought I was going to get caught, but I think I had more power than I thought. If I was losing, I might have felt a little bit of pressure, but I think I was comfortable because I thought that even if I missed it because it was tied, I would have another chance. I went in with no pressure.”
On the same day, the LG Twins lost to the NC Dinos. SSG reclaimed the top spot with a win thanks to Kim Sung-hyun’s finish. “Honestly, I keep looking at the standings, but I don’t think it means much yet. “Of course, being in first place, whether at the beginning or the middle of the season, seems to have a much better effect on the morale and mood of the players,” he said.
Kim Sung-hyun recorded the team’s first and last hits of the game. “I think it was just one of those days when you think about getting the first hit and the last hit,” he said, adding that there was nothing special about it.